Reunited and it Feels So Wait, Clarisse, what have you done?
by dkhockey18
Summary: The Stolls accidently figure out one of Mr. D's worst secrets and the crew of the Argo II finally returns to Camp Half-Blood after Gaea is defeated, but it's not all sunshine and rainbows for everyone.
1. For Better or for Worse

**A/N: I do not own any of this. Enjoy!**

The sun was beginning to near the horizon, and the sky had become tinged with orange when Clarisse and Chris finished sparring in the arena. For the past few days, they had blown off steam until dinner here. As usual they were alone. A week ago, they had gotten word that Percy Jackson had bested another prophecy, saved the Gods, and kept his friends alive. Since Gaea had been defeated, and the Romans had been calmed, none of the campers felt like sparring. They wanted a celebration, not more training.

Clarisse had other ideas, however, and naturally forced her boyfriend to partake in them. She intended to keep her skills sharp. In her opinion, everyone should be on guard until the Romans were long gone and the other heroes returned home. Chris humored her, but tonight he looked especially disappointed by the idea.

The entire camp had been waiting anxiously for the Argo II to return, so when she and Chris saw it practically limp across the horizon, they jumped to their feet and sprinted to camp. As happy as she was to see the ship, she could never admit it to anyone. Percy Jackson was a practically illiterate sea spawn who'd pushed his luck to many times. Fortunately, his luck, good or bed depending on how one looked at it, had saved the camp, and Clarisse, many times.

Most of her anxiety was actually worry. After the note that the camp had received from Annabeth when she and Percy were in Tartarus, Clarisse was worried about two of her oldest friends. But the return of the ship also meant the imminent departure of the Romans, which couldn't come fast enough.

Despite the desire for celebration, there was still an uneasiness about camp if someone paid attention. The Greeks were happy but secretly wary, and the Romans were split between their two leaders. Reyna wanted to congratulate the heroes and Octavian wanted to hang them. At least _that_ particular brat had enough sense not to come near camp without a heavily armed escort.

Still, after she and Chris spread the word of the arrival, hundreds of demigods from both camps streamed towards Half-Blood Hill, under the shadow of the Athena Parthenos resting near Thalia's tree.

Clarisse noticed that Nico di Angelo had crept out of the shadows. He had been distant since his return, but he was more than simply worn out from his own trek through Tartarus and shadow-traveling with the Parthenos. He had, with much prodding, filled in as many gaps as he could about the journey of the seven, but Clarisse could tell he was still holding back a few things, things that were eating away at him.

But she didn't really care. If he didn't want to talk about his issues, fine by her.

She was pulled out of her thoughts as some of the younger campers squealed when the Argo II hovered over the clearing and finally began to descend over the valley. She could see her friends on the deck, smiling and waving. They looked happy and relieved, but still very tired, especially Percy and Annabeth.

As soon as the ship touched down, the heroes were mobbed, by a literal mob. Everyone wanted a piece of the seven, so they were soon separated and overwhelmed. Despite Clarisse's muscling and threatening, she couldn't fight her way to her friends, which frustrated her to no end.

It appeared there was no help coming either, until an impossibly loud whistle sounded and the mob began to part. A short, plump figure was slowly wading through the demigods until he could stand up on the deck, in full view of everyone. Quickly, word spread through the crowd that it was Dionysus, in Greek form. He had not returned to camp since Zeus had called him back to Olympus when the war had started almost a year ago.

"Yes, I'm sure you are all quite giddy to see your heroes and _me_, but I do believe that all this might kill Peter and his friends," Dionysus found Percy's eyes in the sea of people and winked, "Besides, it is dinner time and almost curfew. You don't want your dinner's cut short."

It didn't seem right to split up the two camps now, so Chiron and Mr. D ordered the harpies to serve everyone dinner on the hill. It was absolute chaos, but was still more organized than the first rush to the Argo II. The seven spread out through the crowd without eating much. They tried to find as many of their friends as they could but didn't come close.

As the sun began setting, Mr. D once again climbed to the ship's deck to stand with the seven and Chiron and held everyone's attention, "Dinner is now concluded. We are instituting early curfew tonight, because I'm sure you will all want to be refreshed for the festivities planned for tomorrow. Goodnight."

Clarisse pushed her way to the front as the entire crowd groaned. She made eye contact with Annabeth, who smiled and waved. Percy followed her gaze and smiled at Clarisse too. She responded by punching her open palm with her other fist. Percy only smiled, which infuriated Clarisse.

Mr. D made an attempt to climb down but was interrupted by a shout from the middle of the crowd, "Mr. D, you are, forgetting something. Sir." The entire crowd fixed its gaze on Travis Stoll sitting on his brother's shoulders so he could be seen and heard easily. Clarisse gaped at them. The nerve of those idiots! She expected Mr. D to turn them into dolphins on the spot.

A grunt escaped Mr. D's lips, but to everyone's amazement he stopped climbing off the ship. "Ah, yes. Apparently, I owe those two demigods a debt, but in all of Hades I can't remember why," Travis began to shout again but a snap from Mr. D's fingers curled a vine around his lips, "Ahem, yes, well today is coincidently the Johnson boy's birthday, which somehow was only remembered by the two thieves," a cheer went up from the crowd.

Clarisse scowled. She knew something else was important today besides Prissy's birthday, but couldn't remember what. Mr. D continued, "Which in itself is not very important," a boo followed, "but it has been brought to my attention that some of you have another tradition, a rather _wet_ one, which I enjoy the idea of. After that has concluded, to bed you go."

Most of the demigods in attendance looked very confused. Clarisse put the last piece of the annoyingly elusive yet simple puzzle together and leapt onto the deck of the ship as Travis and Connor screamed, "_GET 'EM_!"

The campers who watched everyone dump Percy and Annabeth in the lake last year after their first kiss stormed the ship. The two heroes did not even struggle but smiled broadly as Clarisse, Malcolm, and a couple prepared Hermes kids picked them up and tossed them gracelessly over the side into the waiting arms of the mob. The rest of the seven, and the crowd was shocked, but quickly recovered and joined the stampede to the canoe lake. The crowd, in honor of last year, carried the two heroes close enough to hold hands until throwing them clumsily into the lake.

The pair did not surface for some time and the crowd's interest slowly faded as Percy's air bubble power was explained to those who didn't know. Eventually all but a few meandered back to their cabins and tents.

* * *

After about an hour, there weren't many Greeks or Romans left on the deck. Piper and Jason sat silently with their feet over the dock, her head resting on his shoulder. Leo sat to the side, chatting with the Stolls, who were still beaming at the success of their arrangement with Mr. D. Leo's gaze only left Thalia to visit on Reyna, who were idly chatting, comparing war stories. Katie Gardner sulked, partly because Travis wasn't paying her any attention, and partly because the only attention she did end up getting was the bad end of a prank. Frank and Hazel were returning from a long walk around the lake. Nico had disappeared. Chris and Clarisse held each other silently, reveling in the peacefulness of the lake.

Connor finally broke the silence, "so do we just, go to bed?"

"Not a chance, I want the uncensored version of their story, of all of your stories," Thalia flatly stated.

Connor and Travis perked up at the word uncensored until they realized that probably meant war and horror stories.

"Frank, why don't you go goldfish mode and give 'em the hint?" Leo said with a wink.

"But what if I, you know, _see_ something that I can't un-see." Hazel and a few others laughed.

"Well I've had enough waiting, and I have an idea." Thalia grunted as she walked to the edge of the dock and dipped her hand in the water, "sorry Kelp Head."

Everyone ran off the dock as they realized what she was going to do, except the Stolls who were laughing too hard to move.

The electric shock raced across the lake in seconds, followed quickly by a sizable jet of water blasting Thalia off the dock. Percy and Annabeth gracefully emerged from a wave, but their hair stood up with static electricity. They both were smiling broadly.

"That hurt Pinecone Face," Percy chided as Thalia climbed out of the lake, "what was that for?"

"We are sick of waiting for you two to finish your alone time. We've been waiting to hear the not-PG version of your story for an hour." She replied as she climbed, soaking wet out of the water.

"Oh, why didn't you say something earlier? To the Argo II!" Percy shot back with a smile, earning a growl from Thalia and laughs from everyone else.

Katie was elected to get Rachel while the rest made their way to the ship. Once they were below decks and unafraid of being overheard, the real reunification actually begun. During the day, the group wasn't able to really talk, or give each other a proper hello.

Annabeth draped Connor in a hug, "Oh my Gods Connor. You saved us, you saved the camp. If you hadn't gotten my message – if you thought it was a joke – thank you so much."

Connor wasn't used to being a hero. He was supposed to be the comic relief, so when Percy followed Annabeth with a bear hug, he almost lost it. Blinking away the tears, he hugged Percy back as best he could.

Just then Katie walked down the steps. Closely behind was Rachel, who was half-dragging Nico by the arm, "Look who I found. He shouldn't miss this either."

Nico scowled as the crew of the Argo II congratulated and properly thanked him for delivering the Parthenos.

* * *

Everyone took their places around the table that had served as the Argo II's donut covered warm room for the duration of the war. Silence crept into the room when no one knew where to begin. There was too much to tell, and not enough words to tell it.

"Okay, why don't we start at the beginning? We all know Jason's story, so Percy tell us what happened at the Roman camp," Rachel volunteered happily.

Everyone nodded and Percy looked embarrassed, but he began with waking up in the Wolf House. He explained how he was hounded by gorgons, with no memory besides his name and Annabeth's face. He walked them through when he carried Juno across the river, with help from Frank and Hazel. Some of the Greeks were a little nervous that he lost his invincibility. They were subsequently awed when they realized he'd stopped Gaia without the Curse of Achilles.

Boos rang around the room during his introduction to Octavian, but the silence was painful when Percy told how he had met Nico and didn't remember him. The silence was so penetrating, Percy stopped telling his story and all heads turned to Nico, who just bowed his head.

As gazes fell and Percy began to speak again, Clarisse sprung to her feet, "YOU _WHAT_?" She asked incredulously.

No one knew how to answer, and no one moved. Clarisse let loose, "You, Ghost Face, you saw him at the Roman camp, and told no one? You knew where the Roman camp was before Hera even started this whole catastrophe? You kept it from us and we didn't even know if he was alive!"

Chris, Percy, and Jason moved as quickly as they could to stop her from pummeling Nico. Percy was the first to find his voice, "No, Clarisse, he couldn't have told me. If I had known, if the Romans had found out who I was, they would have killed me. Gaea would have won," he said soothingly.

Recognition and logic briefly overcame the anger in her eyes. She wheeled on Percy, eyes burning brighter than before, "Fine, but he could have told _us_ you were alive. We spent months searching for you, slowly losing hope. Any longer…"

"You would've tried to rescue me, and it would have ended horribly."

She began to calm down. Her voice was getting softer, "We could have found another way. We could have come up with a new plan to solve everything. Annabeth could've-" her eyes lit up and she pushed Percy, "NO! You didn't see us, Percy. You didn't see Annabeth. You didn't see _your_ girlfriend's eyes. It was worse than Silena last summer! Our spirits fell faster than when Thalia's tree was poisoned. We had hope then, we had _you_! Earthshaker, Stormbreaker, retriever of the Master Bolt, retriever of the Golden Fleece, the boy who held up the sky, the best swordsman to ever live, the bane of monsters, champion of the Gods, savior of Olympus! Percy Jackson," she slammed her fist on the table, "Gone!"

Everyone held their breath, Annabeth started crying, and Percy faltered. Even Jason was too shocked to move. Chris tried to pull her back but she tossed him off.

She returned her attention to Nico, "You! We took you in after your sister died. We made you family. We even forgave you after you betrayed Percy to your father. We tried to support you when you pushed us away, but you aren't one of us! We trusted you, and you let us down, _again_!"

Now Jason blocked her path, "Clarisse, it was one of the hardest decisions of the war for Nico, but it was the _right_ one. It was the _only_ way to save both camps _and_ Olympus. Nico di Angelo _is_ a hero. He brought the Parthenos here. He _saved_ the camp. That is the _only_ thing that matters!"

Clarisse stomped her foot in protest. She was so visibly overwhelmed with emotion, no one knew if she was going to punch Jason, cry, faint, or all three. After a few seconds her brain started functioning again and the anger went out of her. Chris was finally able to lead her into an adjacent room.

When Jason turned around, he found Nico in a ball on the floor, shaking and sobbing soundlessly.

* * *

While Hazel and Annabeth helped Jason gently carry Nico to a bedroom, Percy slumped in a chair. Clarisse's words had hit him in the chest like a hammer on an anvil. The others were silently watching him, waiting for his reaction. Even the Stolls couldn't crack a smile. After a few minutes, Rachel got up and hugged Percy. Travis and Connor stood next, followed by Katie to form one of the strangest, and yet still touching, group hugs Leo and Frank had ever seen.

"Don't you dare leave camp again, Percy Jackson," Rachel commanded.

"Yeah, I mean Clarisse shouldn't have gone off like that, but she wasn't lying. We thought we'd lost you," Travis added, pulling Katie closer to him.

Percy gulped. He couldn't imagine what his friends had gone through. For anyone, especially Clarisse, to lose control over their emotions after they had just gotten a happy ending, meant more to him than he could ever express in words. He had to choke back tears.

"Oh Gods, break it up or you're going to make me cry too," Leo said, thankfully injecting some humor into the mood.

Annabeth entered the room as the four pealed themselves off of Percy and sat down. She walked over and sat on his lap, resting her head on his shoulder, "You should go see them."

Everyone silently agreed, so Percy slowly stood up. He wanted to give Clarisse as much tiem to cool off as possibe, so he started for Nico's door.

Slowly, he pushed the door open and crept in. Nico was curled in a ball on the bed and appeared to be asleep. Jason watched with his arms crossed while Hazel paced the room.

Percy tapped Jason. "Is he asleep?" he whispered.

"I don't know. I think he passed out from being overwhelmed," Jason replied without taking his gaze from Nico. He couldn't hide the worry in his eyes that he could with the authoritative stance. Percy wondered when Jason had become so close with Nico. He remembered Frank saying something about a hushed incident with Cupid, but no one could figure it out.

"You should check Clarisse," Jason continued, "I'll get you when he's ready to talk. Hazel you go too."

"But he's my brother!" she answered, her voice full of hurt and confusion, "I need to be here for him."

"I know you want to, but I need to talk to him when he wakes up. Alone. You two will be the first to see him," Jason replied calmly, but his voice quivered with concern.

Before Hazel could protest further, Percy interrupted, "Thanks, Jason."

Percy clapped Jason on the shoulder and led Hazel out of the room. No matter the secret Jason and Nico shared, Percy hoped Jason understood how much his concern meant to Percy and hopefully Hazel too.

Hazel walked over to the table and sat down next to Leo, arms crossed and pouting. Leo grinned and started teasing her. _Good, that'll distract her for a while_.

Percy took a deep breath, and crossed to the other side of the hall. Before he could chicken out, he pushed the door open and quickly shut it behind him.

Inside, Clarisse was staring out the window. Percy could see her tense when the door shut, but she didn't turn around. Chris was sitting on the bed watching her, but he did turn to look at Percy.

He met Percy's gaze and simply nodded while he moved to the other side of the bed. Percy could have his moment with Clarisse, but Chris wanted to be nearby if she needed him again. Hopefully that wasn't an indication of how bad her mood was.

Percy stood for a moment, trying to find the right words without any luck. Thankfully, Clarisse broke the silence after turning around, "Prissy, say what you have to say already and get out."

When he met her eyes, he was overcome with a host of emotions, but couldn't pick one to act on. Clearly she was still mad though, so Percy did what he did best, and allowed his impulsivity to take over. He walked right up to her and gave her a hug, "Thank you."

Clarisse was caught off guard at first, but then relaxed. In a moment of weakness, she returned his hug and then in a blink pushed him off, so that not even Chris saw what she did.

"Don't have a moment here, punk. That was for the camp and for Annabeth, not for you. I only wanted you back because I had to take over some responsibilities, which interfered with beating the other weakling campers to a pulp. Besides, they were all too depressed to put up a good fight anyway," she said with a disappointed growl.

Percy grinned, "Wouldn't want it any other way," he hesitated, "You know Annabeth isn't – wasn't – Silena, right?"

For a second, the hurt flashed back into Clarisse's eyes, "Yeah, figured that out pretty quick. She did get really sad and really crazy, but Hades is she strong, even if she's an Athena kid," she shook her head, and her eyes returned to the _normal_ angry look, "But don't flatter yourself, you're no Beckendorf either. You know how he was smarter, cooler, nicer, but you're more fun to beat up."

Clarisse punched Percy in the arm hard enough for him to stumble. He turned to leave and saw Chris grinning wildly. As his hand found the doorknob, he remembered the other reason he had come in the room.

"Clarisse, you know you have to apologize, when he's ready," Percy wasn't asking.

"But –" she stammered before Chris cut her off.

"Yes, she knows," he said seriously, but the smile hadn't faded from his face.

* * *

For an hour, Jason had sat in complete silence. He sat a few feet from where Nico lay, facing resting on his hands. Every once in a while, laughter from the rest of the demigods filtered into the room. Jason wanted to be with them, but he wasn't angry at Nico for his missing it, or Clarisse for that matter.

Both parties could be understood, and he knew he had to be there for Nico. With Gaea defeated, they had all the time in the world to celebrate. Demigods just couldn't get a moment of peace.

Nico began to stir, thankfully snapping Jason out of his reverie. Slowly, Nico remembered what had happened and Jason saw a terrified look in Nico's eyes. Without thinking, Jason launched himself across the bed and grabbed Nico's arm as the son of Hades shadow traveled away from the Argo II.

After Jason was squeezed out of the shadow realm, he stumbled and fell to his knees wheezing. Nico shook off his grip and backed away from Jason quickly.

"I told you that after the House of Hades I was leaving forever. You got me to stick around to deliver the Parthenos. You shouldn't have followed me home."

For the first time Jason took in his surroundings. He was kneeling in the middle of what appeared to be a garden. Beautiful flowers and plants surrounded the stone paths. Jason also spotted a few disturbing, impossibly lifelike, stone sculptures of satyrs and humans. The garden was also massive, spreading in all directions. Behind him was a looming black palace. Jason was clearly in the Underworld and uncomfortably close to his uncle's home.

"Nico, you can't leave like that, not after everything. At least say goodbye," Jason pleaded.

"I was going to after I delivered the Parthenos, that's why I'm still here. But now, why should I? You heard Clarisse. I am not one of them. I am a bad omen for the camp. They are better off without me, and I'm better off here," Nico replied flatly.

Jason had to take a moment to gather his thoughts. Nico was toeing a very thin edge, and Jason had to extremely carefully guide him off. Jason gulped.

"Clarisse overreacted. You know she doesn't deal with emotions well, besides anger, and the wounds are still raw for a lot of the campers. You do belong –"

"It doesn't matter! No, I didn't deserve that lashing, but that doesn't mean it wasn't true," his voice trailing off at the end.

Jason stood and took a step towards Nico, which Nico copied backwards. "You deserve better. You deserve to be honored as a hero, and you can be. The others, well, they deserve a goodbye."

"You're right. I owe them at least a goodbye, but even more. I owe all of them everything. I owe Percy Jackson _everything_!" His voice trembled with hurt and anger, but he took a step towards Jason, "But we both know that demigods very rarely get what we deserve."

Now it was Jason's turn to back up as Nico was inches from his face. Jason was again faced with the chance that he would have to fight Nico if he wasn't careful, and again didn't know if he was up for the challenge.

"Once, Jason, you told me I should stop running, stop hiding. I plan to, but I plan to do it from my real home," Nico spread his arms, drawing Jason's attention once again to their bleak surroundings, "That home just happens to be the Underworld. If I went back, I wouldn't be able to hide the emotions, the hurt and anger and everything else, and then they would know. I'd be remembered as even more of a freak than I already will be."

Nico began shaking again, but wouldn't break off from Jason's gaze, as though he was trying to telepathically make Jason understand. The son of Zeus stopped backing up, and put a hand on Nico's shoulder, to which Nico shuddered but didn't pull away.

"Nico, if they knew, they would only be able to respect you. To do everything you did, with the burden you still carry is incredible. Please, trust me. Have faith in your family for once."

Then Jason surprised them both and embraced Nico, careful not to hug him too tight. Nico didn't return the gesture or speak, and Jason really didn't know what would happen. He closed his eyes for a moment and hoped he wouldn't open them to the EZ-Death line.

When he did open his eyes, he realized that Nico had shadow traveled them back to the room he had slept in on the Argo II.

"Nico –" Jason started but was cut off.

"No. No more words."

Jason simply nodded.

* * *

Percy was laughing quietly as Leo retold him and Hazel's encounter with Narcissus. Annabeth sat next to him, smiling and holding his hand. _It was good to be home_.

The sound of a door opening in the hallway reminded him that a few problems still had to be dealt with. Despite the optimistic ending to their conversation, Clarisse and Chris had yet to rejoin the group. Percy thought they finally were done with Zeus only knows what and was surprised to see Jason in the hallway.

Hazel questioned Jason with a thumbs up sign, and he nodded, which was probably as telling of Nico's state as they were going to get. Following Hazel, Percy was anxious to get in and get out. He felt for Nico, he really did, but Nico's moodiness was just hard to handle sometimes, especially when a celebration was in order.

Nico was standing at the foot of the bed, looking no more upset than usual, which was a good sign. He did seem to be just as anxious as Percy though, which was an odd relief.

The four stood in silence for a moment, everyone but Jason having found a sudden interest in their feet.

"Percy, listen –" Nico began and was interrupted.

"No, Nico, let me start. I'm so sorry for what Clarisse said, it was uncalled for and untrue. You are our family and always will be. Never forget that."

Percy stepped forward and embraced Nico tightly. He had given an abnormal amount of hugs, to an odd assortment of people, in the last hour. At first Nico did nothing. After a few seconds he began to tremble, and then started to cry. It was peaceful though. When Nico returned Percy's embrace, Jason smiled just a little. He was really proud of that kid.

After only crying for a few seconds, Nico gently pushed away and stepped back to look Percy in the eye. It looked like he was going to say something but Percy beat him to it, "Hey, I get it if you want to leave, Nico. No one will hold anything against you. Always remember we built the Hades cabin for a reason. When you do go, don't make it like its final, you know?"

Nico actually smirked a bit at him and nodded knowingly. Percy turned to leave and walked straight into Clarisse, who had crept in silent as a mouse. He stepped to the side and allowed Clarisse to approach Nico. Both of them averted their gaze.

"So, uh, sorry about that back there. We were just, you know, worried really badly. You did the right thing. And like Prissy said, it's not like we are gonna tear down your cabin or anything," the daughter of Ares paused. She managed to fit every uncomfortable body language gesture into a single sentence. "Thanks, Nico."

Both of them stood in silence for a moment and then Nico thrust his hand forward. Clarisse nodded, shook it awkwardly, and then scampered out of the room. Percy and Jason were close behind, giving Hazel and Nico a sibling moment.

Percy stopped Jason just outside the door, "Thanks man. You didn't have to look after him like that, but I'm glad you did. He needs as much cousin attention as he can get."

Jason appeared to wince but quickly looked down the hallway, "He's a tough kid Percy. Just a kid still, despite everything he's had to go through. You and I know what that's like."

"For better or for worse," Percy replied with his sarcastic smile, even though he knew that would be the last time he saw Nico di Angelo for a very long time. They proceeded to walk back to the others.

Annabeth, who was seated closest to the hallway, heard Percy and Jason's voices and turned around. When she met Percy's eyes, her face lit up. Clearly she saw on his face that the situation had been resolved peacefully.

Before he could sit down, she was on her feet. Annabeth grabbed Percy's hand and led him in the other direction, towards the stairs.

While fending off an attack from Piper, Leo had caught their movement and couldn't help but bring it to the group's attention, "Don't let Coach Hedge catch you alone again, lovebirds!"

Travis perked up, "What do you mean _again_?"

"Oh good, story time!" Katie squealed as Leo dove into his version of the story.

* * *

A light breeze washed over the Argo II as Percy and Annabeth climbed to the open deck. The moon was full, the stars were bright, and there was not a cloud in the sky. Festus creaked and happily spewed flames as they approached the bow.

"Well, another crisis avoided by the great seven," Percy lamented. His voice dripped with sarcasm, but his eyes twinkled as he wrapped his arm around Annabeth's waist.

"Listen, Percy, I'm sorry I froze back there. Clarisse struck too close to home. All the memories and pain flooded –"

Percy interrupted her by kissing her full on the lips. When she broke away, he replied, "It is okay, we took care of it. You don't have to do everything, Wise Girl."

"Neither do you, Seaweed Brain," She cooed softly.

Both of them stood silently for a while, looking over the bow at the camp below. They were finally home. Percy ranked this moment near the top of his favorites, not quite touching his and Annabeth's reunion at the Roman Camp, but above when they had been fished out of Tartarus.

A happy thought dawned on Percy. He jumped and hugged Annabeth tight. "That's it!"

Annabeth looked utterly confused. When he didn't elaborate, she prodded, "What's it?"

Percy calmed a bit, "Well, at least I hope that's it. I mean, think through all the Greek myths you know. Who's left?"

"We are, Kelp Head. The Gods survived, and so did we."

"No, that's not what I meant," he was stunned Annabeth hadn't figured it out before him, "We've beaten Kronos and the Titans and Gaea and the Giants, what's left? In our lifetime there couldn't be another prophecy, another war, because the real baddies will be dust until long after we are gone."

Annabeth frowned when he said gone, but laughed a bit when she realized he was right, _probably_. "Percy, if we've learned anything, it's that the Fates don't like us very much. Don't jinx it." She wagged a finger at him but smiled.

"I don't care. They've done their worst, I know it. Yeah, there will always be monsters, but nothing we can't handle together."

Her stormy gray eyes grew bright at his last word and she kissed him, "As long as we are together." Percy couldn't remember the last time he saw her smile like that.

The exchange was momentarily ruined when Hazel burst onto the deck, followed by Frank and Jason, who were calling after her. She looked panicked, and Frank had a worried expression, but it appeared to be concentrated on Hazel. Jason looked like whatever had happened was nothing to freak out about, which put Percy at ease.

Hazel's eyes swept the deck frantically, before she rushed over to Percy, "Did he come up here?"

Percy and Annabeth exchanged a confused look, and Frank explained when Hazel began wheezing, "Nico's gone."

"Define gone," Annabeth requested.

"He's not on the ship anymore. This was the last place we hadn't looked," Hazel answered, seemingly recovered.

"So? It's Nico we're talking about," Percy replied without really reflecting on the events of the previous hour.

Jason and Frank scowled and Annabeth punched him lightly on the arm. Hazel looked horrified, "After what just happened downstairs, Percy? After you left I spoke to him quickly and we went back to everyone. A little while later I noticed he wasn't in the room anymore. We searched, but…"

Her voice faded and a single tear rolled down her cheek. Jason looked as unsurprised as Percy felt. Frank and Annabeth were only concerned about Hazel, who continued, "He didn't say goodbye, not even to me. He's just gone."

The five of them hung their heads in silence. They all felt for Hazel. All of them had missed an important goodbye at least once. Percy remembered when Annabeth had been dragged off the cliff by the Manticore, when they had first rescued Nico, and that Nico never got to say goodbye to his beloved sister, Bianca.

"Maybe that's a good thing," Percy surprised everyone, including himself, by breaking the silence, "I mean, no one likes goodbyes right? This way, Nico's not really gone, he _is_ somewhere. He's just not here right now. We'll see him again."

Hazel pondered this for a moment, and then gently hugged Percy, "Thanks."

Jason clapped him in on the shoulder, "Wow, didn't expect that out of your mouth, Percy. Annabeth maybe –"

"But not from a Fish Face," Frank completed. Everyone laughed, and Frank turned bright red, not expecting a joke like that to come from his own mouth. The three turned and allowed Annabeth and Percy to have their privacy.

Annabeth looked up at him, "Percy Jackson, that was one of the most intelligent and sensitive things you've ever said. Do not make a habit of it," she said with a huge grin.

"What? But you always call me an idiot!" Percy exclaimed.

She laughed, "Yes, but as long as it doesn't endanger our lives, then you're a cute idiot, Seaweed Brain."

Percy sighed, "Why can't you make just one thing easy for me, Wise Girl?"

"Because I promised that I would never, ever make things easy for you. And I, for one, keep my promises," She said, the happiness practically oozing from her voice.

They kissed, and Percy let himself melt into her. For the first time in years, they were safe and happy. They were home and with their best friends, but most importantly, they were together. Percy didn't intend to let a single one of those things change.


	2. The Deal with the Wind Dude

**A/N: This is how the Stolls goaded Mr. D into helping with their tradition. Enjoy!**

**I own nothing.**

Travis Stoll heard his brother giggle as they crept along the row of cabins from Demeter to Dionysus. Both were extremely pleased with themselves after implementing a prank on the Demeter cabin for the fourth night in a row. Since Gaea's defeat, the troublemakers had been on a warpath, kicking off the festivities with firecracker trip-wire bombs in all the cabins and mess hall.

They trusted their friends wholeheartedly, and knew that Percy and Annabeth would not fail. They also didn't want to dwell on the Roman threat too much, so they had spent the past month planning this week of prank celebrations. After a _suggestion_ from Chiron, neither had pulled anything dramatic since Percy's disappearance. Travis missed running away from Katie Gardner's screams and the Apollo cabin's arrows.

Pranks also weren't the same without Mr. D. There was something thrilling about having a God threaten to change you into a dolphin, but then giving you kitchen duty instead. Besides, Chiron never had the heart to truly reprimand them, because he knew that's how they coped. The Stolls were also the closest thing the camp had to a spirit after Percy. It had hurt Chiron as much as them to suppress their antics.

So the Stolls were the happiest they'd been in a long time after cursing the plants around Demeter's cabin. The brothers had persuaded a rather weak-willed son of Hecate to teach them a curse that would cause the plants to reach out and snag anyone passing by. No one would be entering or leaving that cabin for the foreseeable future. It would infuriate Katie even more when she realized it was her own plants attacking her. The thought brought a wide grin to Travis's face.

On the spur of the moment, the two had decided to top off the night with a prank on Mr. D's own cabin. Usually they were wary, but it didn't look like their loving camp director had any intention of returning soon. The boys decided it was now or never.

They sat in the bushes, scoping out the place while trying to decide what their move would be. "Go big or go home," Travis muttered to his brother.

"Well duh, but why are you saying that now," Connor replied inquisitively.

"This might be our only chance to get at Mr. D personally. We have to think big picture, total warfare, shock and awe," Travis explained happily.

"Alright, so it's got to be new and it's got to be big. Hmmmmm…"

The silence was deep but comfortable as Travis and Connor ran through a million simulations in their heads. "What does Mr. D hate more than anything?" Connor asked.

"Us, and Percy. Got the 'us' taken care of and Fish Head isn't back yet," Travis replied solemnly. He jumped to his feet as he got an idea, "No, Connor, wrong question. What does Mr. D _love_?"

"Wine, wine, and pinochle?" Connor asked innocently.

"Well, we can't get wine, and a prank involving pinochle would be lame. Connor, he loves diet coke."

Travis had already started walking away from the cabin, and Connor struggled to catch up, "So?" Travis didn't respond, the gears too busy turning in his mind.

"Okay here's the plan. I need you to get into the Hephaestus kids' forge. Get as big of a container as you can find. Also, go back to our cabin and get the cutters and some rope and stuff so we can hoist the container."

Connor was confused but liked how complicated it was getting, "What are you going to do?"

"Give me the backpack, there's drachma in it right?" Connor handed it over and Travis fished around inside until he pulled out a plastic bag of gold coins, "I'm going to go to the mess and start stealing Diet coke cases and putting them on the roof. I'll bribe any harpy who catches me."

Connor started cackling when he realized exactly what his brother had in mind. Mr. D was going to kill them when he got back, but it was going to be worth it.

* * *

An hour and a half later, Travis was sitting on a mountain of Diet Coke. Stacked eight cases high and 10 cases long, he had built a pyramid throne of low calorie caffeine while waiting for Connor to return. Shortly after completing his masterpiece, he saw Connor using a Pegasus to drag a massive bowl that could Cerberus could use for a water bowl. Travis smiled and hopped off his throne.

The backpack sailed through the air and landed in Travis's hands, heavier now. He removed the cutters and the rope and winches he'd need for the pulley system to get the monstrosity onto the top of the cabin. The pegasus was going to come in handy for that pulley. _And they say only Hephaestus kids can build. _Somewhere on Mount Olympus, Travis knew his dad and Apollo were laughing proudly at the plan.

When Connor walked over, they high fived and Travis began to quietly climb the cabin wall. As he reached the top, a vine shot out of the ground with a crack and wrapped around his ankle. "Uh oh," he managed to cry before the vine threw him painfully to the ground, but it didn't let go. He quickly stood, and another vine grabbed his other ankle. Connor cried out as the same thing happened to him. Travis had no idea what was happening. Was their plant curse backfiring somehow?

A cloud of purple smoke appeared in front of him. As the smoke dissipated, Travis saw a very angry Mr. D standing in front of him. They were both speechless. "Uh oh," just didn't seem to cover it.

"What, exactly, do you two think you are doing?" Mr. D hissed, hands clenched behind his back.

The boys looked at each other, still not comprehending how their seemingly foolproof plan had backfired so horribly. Travis just gaped while Connor spoke, "Hey Mr. D! We, uh, didn't see you there. Glad you're back!" Connor put on his best smile.

The vines tightened around their ankles. Even Travis knew that wasn't the best thing to say, although he probably would have said it anyway too.

"Do the two of you think that when I'm gone the rules no longer apply? Let me tell you, brats, that I have seen every move you've made this week. I was going to let it slide, but THIS!" he exclaimed, pointing at the pyramid of soda, "is just absurd."

"Mr. D, I can explain –" Connor tried to speak but was cut off when a vine wrapped around his lips.

"No, I don't believe you can," Mr. D was seriously angry. He wasn't faking exasperation or being indifferent this time. For the first time, Travis was truly terrified of what Mr. D was going to do to him. But why was he so mad? Mr. D only cared about their pranks because the consequences inconvenienced _him_, not the campers. They were his own kids, but still.

Travis took a big gulp, time to play a hunch, "If you've seen us this week, why didn't you just stop us?"

"Well, Tristan, I may want to turn you into an orchid or a dolphin, but you and your sibling's troublemaking will help return the camp to normal."

"So what?" Mr. D looked taken aback, "What do you care about normal? You aren't even here, so it doesn't inconvenience you. Why do you care?"

Travis hadn't meant for it to, but after he finished he realized the last question had a much larger scope than this singular instance. Travis smiled, and the look on Mr. D's face told him he had the God now.

"You care about us!" Travis said pointing from the wine God to himself, "You are just a big faker. It's an act!" Travis grinned proudly and Connor tried to mutter something.

"You are babbling now, Tucker. I was not going to allow you to waste this ridiculous amount of Diet Coke to prank my own children." Mr. D replied, but sounded much less confident. His anger was gone. Travis had stolen his thunder.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. You're forgetting I'm a Hermes kid. I can smell a liar a mile away. Don't worry, I won't tell the whole camp that you care or that you've been watching over all of us from Olympus this whole time. I don't think that would uphold the reputation you love so much."

"Listen here, and listen well. I'll turn you both into something much worse than a dolphin if you start spreading lies-"

"No, I don't believe you will," Travis interrupted, mocking him. Mr. D growled impatiently, but didn't say anything. Travis knew he had him now, "If what you say is true, which it is, that we are important to the camp's recovery, and if what I say is true, which it is, that you truly do care about this camp and everyone here, you will not be turning us into anything tonight."

"Do not challenge me, boy. You seem to forget that I am a God," Mr. D began to glow.

Travis ignored his threat, "We have two conditions."

Connor tried to speak. Travis added, "Okay three, first un-vine us."

Mr. D snapped his fingers and the vines returned to the earth. Travis immediately sat down and began massaging circulation back into his ankles while Connor stretched his mouth. Travis momentarily forgot what situation he was in until Mr. D snapped at him, "What else do you want?" The annoyance in his voice was real now. _Good, he's back_.

"Okay, Mr. All-Powerful God Guy, you know when the Argo returns. Tell me."

"Tomorrow."

Travis was giddy, "Oh thank the Gods. Tomorrow is Percy's birthday, Mr. D."

"Don't you dare try to make me do something nice for that upstart," Mr. D's glare could stop a charging Minotaur in its tracks.

"Not exactly. Tomorrow is also Percy and Annabeth's anniversary, on which I have decided to make a tradition of throwing the two of them in the lake. I want you to encourage the entire crowd to partake in this tradition. It will mean a lot to camp."

The corners of Mr. D's mouth actually turned upward a bit, "Let me get this straight. You want me to encourage hundreds of annoying, ADHD teenagers to throw the two campers that have caused me the most trouble into the lake?" Travis nodded, "Well, I must say, Tanner, in all the time I've had the misfortune to know you, that is your first _good_ idea."

Travis and Connor winked at each other. Mr. D turned to leave, but Connor stopped him, "We have a third condition."

The light in Mr. D's eyes was quickly extinguished, "We just had a moment of understanding. Thank you for ruining it. _What_ else could you possibly want?" He was even more agitated now.

Connor smiled and pointed sheepishly at the pile of soda, "We get to finish our prank." He crossed his arms and tried to look serious.

"Not a chance."

Travis interjected before Connor got them wrapped in vines again, "It's for the good of the camp. If you let us, you can put us on kitchen duty for a week. We won't even complain!"

"Now, boy, don't make a promise you can't keep. You'll do two weeks with a minor amount of complaining."

Travis wasn't backing down now, "Ten days, no weekends, with a mild amount of complaining," he countered.

A few moments of silence passed as the God glanced back and forth between the boys.

"Deal. Now, don't forget, no spreading your lies either."

"We swear upon pain of death by kitchen duty." Travis replied.

Mr. D nodded and turned away from them, "Now, that would be fun to see," he said to no one in particular as he evaporated into purple smoke.

Travis felt his legs go weak and he sat down. The adrenaline and confidence that surged through him a moment ago left abruptly. He realized that his heart was pounding and that he was actually terrified. _I stood up to a God! _

Connor sat next to him, "Way to go, bro. You just pulled a Percy and we didn't die!."

"Oh, shut up. It was just Mr. D," Travis said back, feigning annoyance. Connor was right though, Percy would be proud of him, and that made him beam on the inside, "Let's go. We have a prank to finish."

Travis reacquired the ropes and cutters that he dropped when the vine grabbed him and started climbing back onto the roof. He imagined tomorrow morning. The screams of Katie Gardner would be heard across the valley, and Dionysus's kids would wake up to a flood of Diet Coke, their dad's favorite beverage, filling their cabin from above. Impending chaos of his own design always made him happy, but tomorrow his friends were coming home too, hopefully for good. Tomorrow was going to be the best at camp day in a long time.


	3. The Three Big Teenagers

Poseidon stood alone over the fountain at the center of his palace on Olympus. It was more of a guest house, because he rarely stayed there for extended periods of time. He would rather remain in his underwater kingdom, where his power was strongest, unless his presence was required at a council meeting. The constant bickering of the portion of his family that resided there permanently also unnerved him. It was a disease that Poseidon had no desire to catch.

The fountain he was looking into was massive, standing three times his height. Four marble jets stretched from the base into the air. Each jet faced a point on the compass. The base was covered in the map of the world, with longitude and latitude lines drawn in.

With a wave of his hand, an image appeared before the god. He watched the demigods carry Percy and Annabeth to the lake and throw them in. A smile spread across Poseidon's face. His son was home, happy and safe, hopefully for the last time.

"I hope you know I'm not giving him the same offer." A voice echoed behind the sea god.

"You still bitter about that? I hope _you_ know that we'd be talking in Tartarus right now if he'd accepted." Poseidon replied.

Zeus ignored him and walked forward. "I had an inkling that you'd be watching this too."

"You didn't want to watch this with Hera did you?" the sea god asked. His tone was only half mocking.

The god of the skies was quiet for a few moments. Poseidon saw his brow wrinkle in thought. _Odd, he rarely thinks that hard in times of crisis._ Hera's theft of Percy and Jason's memories had taken a tougher toll on Zeus than his brother. Poseidon always knew Annabeth would never have let anything happen to his son. Zeus, on the other hand, didn't have a mortal to trust with Jason's life, and his own wife was the one who had put him in danger.

"I still have much I need to discuss with Hera. This moment is not one of them." Poseidon nodded in understanding. He'd rather not watch this with Amphitrite either. Zeus's brow furrowed even more. _Hades, what is wrong with him?_

"Brother, I wanted to thank you. Without your son's help, we all would have suffered terrible fates, especially my own children." Zeus said quietly. His face was unreadable.

Poseidon allowed a smug smile to creep onto his face. It wasn't everyday his brother gave anyone else credit, especially one of his nephews. He looked up at him, "What, are you afraid to say that in front of the council?"

Zeus glared at him, "That's a funny idea, brother." There was no humor in his voice, "No, I told you because someone deserved to be told, and I sure as Hades wasn't going to tell your son myself. No, I'll leave boosting his ego to you and Chiron. Even Athena will have to thank him for his performance this time." Zeus shook his head.

Athena thanking Percy Jackson. Now there was a sight Poseidon would make sure Hermes recorded. Maybe he would put a live feed of that moment on repeat in his palace.

"I suppose I owe Athena's daughter a 'thank you' as well, and probably an apology. I'll make sure to tell her personally. Maybe even in front of the entire council."

Thunder roared outside. Poseidon grinned, satisfied.

In the image, Poseidon watched his other descendant, Frank Zhang, walk around the beach hand in hand with the daughter of Hades, Hazel. Now there was an odd couple, but they seemed to work well together and Frank's shape shifting had proved invaluable.

A crack sounded behind them, and the two gods turned to find their third brother, Hades, dusting himself off, "If you two are going to have brother powwows without me, please don't use my name so much. You know I can hear you. I would have come earlier, but I was helping Thanatos with the final repairs and upgrades to the Doors." Sarcasm dripped from his voice but his smile was warm. Hades looked around the palace, "Poseidon I absolutely _love_ what you've done with the place." His grin turned wicked but the sarcastic tone remained.

"Always a pleasure, brother. It would appear your invitation got lost in the mail. You know how unreliable Hermes is." Poseidon smiled good-naturedly.

"It's good to hear about the Doors." Zeus said flatly. He wasn't quite frowning, but he certainly wasn't smiling.

Hades strode to Zeus's side and elbowed him in the ribs, "Lighten up, brother. It's time for a celebration!" He laughed and pointed into the fountain, "What's going on? What did I miss?"

"Well, the sea spawn and his girlfriend are sitting at the bottom of the lake and the rest are waiting for them." Zeus explained.

"Typical, it's always about Jackson." Poseidon glared at him and Hades changed the subject, "Where's Nico?"

Neither Zeus not Poseidon looked at him. "He wandered off." Poseidon offered.

Poseidon could see worry replace the smile on Hades' face. Hades got a bad rap as far as caring for his children went, but Poseidon knew it was difficult to take adequate care of them from the Underworld. It was hard enough for Poseidon to take care of one from the sea, but Percy was a _special_ case. Looking at Zeus, it was clear their youngest brother didn't notice or care about Hades concern. _Typical_.

Hades' face grew pained, "Did either of you happen to see…" His voice trailed off and his eyes searched his brothers' for answers. Zeus pretended not to hear him, but he momentarily winced. Hades cringed and turned to Poseidon, who held his gaze.

"Yes, and I'm sure our brother saw it too, considering his child was actually present." The sea god's glare was frightening. Zeus still stared at the fountain. Poseidon walked over to place a hand on Hades' shoulder, "I'm sorry Nico is so troubled, and I wish that he would learn to trust the others. I'm glad Jason was able to be there for him."

"I appreciate it, I really do, brother. I just wish Nico did. He underestimates his friends." Hades replied solemnly.

Laughter erupted from Zeus, "Poseidon, my daughter just shocked the lake."

Poseidon and Hades raced to the edge of the fountain in time to see Thalia blasted off the dock. They both laughed and Zeus pouted. The king of the gods' sense of humor did not apply to him or his children.

The three watched in patient silence as the motley crew of teenagers made their way to the Argo II. Even Zeus smiled a bit when Annabeth and Percy hugged Connor Stoll. He tried to hide it when he realized, but Poseidon caught the twitch. _Maybe there was hope for him after all_.

The happiness returned to Hades' eyes when Rachel dragged Nico into the room and everyone showered him with praise. Pride flowed through Poseidon as he modestly began telling his story. Zeus had been noticeably quiet. He was probably miffed that his son wasn't getting much spotlight.

"Hey Zeus, for what it's worth, it would've been _harder_ for Percy to complete this quest without Jason's help." Hades grinned and surprisingly, so did Zeus.

"For what it's worth, Poseidon, go to Tartarus." Zeus's grin nearly matched Hades'.

"Athena, stop the presses! Please let this go down in history as the first time in a millennium that the almighty King of the Gods responded to a joke about his own son, with another joke! Oh, Fates!" Hades' cried dramatically, "Where is Hermes and his blasted video camera when he's needed?"

Thunder boomed outside, but Zeus' smile had miraculously grown even wider. He threw his arm around Hades, "Well, brother, I decided to take your advice. It's time to cel–"

All three brothers' smiles evaporated as their attention was pulled back to the fountain. The daughter of Ares, Clarisse, was on her feet, screaming at Nico. Hades snarled. Zeus steadied him with a hand.

Poseidon had mixed feelings as he watched the scene. He was proud as Clarisse rattled off Percy's achievements, but he, like Percy, hadn't fully appreciated what the idea of Percy Jackson meant to the campers. He looked at Hades as Clarisse turned her attention back to Nico. The king of the Underworld's face was contorted with rage. _Anytime our family tries to repair itself, we crumble. Sometimes the Fates are too cruel_. They all let the scene play out in silence.

"**We even forgave you after you betrayed Percy to your father. We tried to support you when you pushed us away, but you aren't one of us! We trusted you, and you let us down,**_**again**_**!"**

Part of Hades' anger melted into sadness as he realized he bore some of the blame for Nico's lashing. Poseidon pitied him now. Hades' actions seemed to follow his children closest of all the gods. This was the last thing Nico deserved.

Zeus received a thankful look from Hades when Jason admirably stood up. Poseidon wished Percy had done more, but knew it was hard to stand up to someone who was defending you so admirably.

"I'm going to kill Ares." Hades snarled.

"Brother, Ares is not to blame." Poseidon replied calmly.

"You're just saying that because she's defending your son!" Hades yelled, pointing at the image. It pained Poseidon to look his brother in the eyes. This seemed to resonate with him, because he calmed, "You are right. We try our best to avoid judging demigods based on actions of their parents. We must do the opposite here. Now is not the time to return to our hypocritical ways." A single tear rolled down his cheek when Jason and Annabeth picked the crumbled ball formerly known as Nico di Angelo from the ground and carried him into the next room.

Poseidon's chest swelled with pride when Percy was bombarded with another group hug. Zeus smiled proudly when they observed Jason watch over Nico as he slept. Hades's face bore no expression. His anger had faded now that Nico was, at least temporarily, out of the line of fire. Poseidon hoped Percy and Jason could fix this.

While Percy and Clarisse made up, the gods watched with confused expressions. "I will never understand demigods." Hades commented coolly.

"Why is she pretending to hate him again? How could she after she just defended him so viciously?" Poseidon questioned.

"I once asked a woman why mortal adolescence was so confusing and seemingly painful," Zeus volunteered. His brothers could not believe he had noticed, let alone cared to ask about this stage of their childrens' lives, "She laughed at me. She said 'They're teenagers. They wouldn't learn if it was easy' as if that was supposed to explain it." He snorted.

Poseidon thought for a moment about his own family. They often pretended to hate each other because they felt they were supposed to. His own rivalry with Athena had become boring, mainly because of their children. Percy and Annabeth's latest adventure had forced the two gods together in grief and anger. Poseidon saw the underlying tenderness in their nicknames, not so unlike his and Athena's. The Stolls constantly pranked Katie and the Demeter cabin, even though Kaite and Travis were in love. Despite Percy and Clarisse's banter and threats, they had proven time and time again that they would fight and die for one another. _An immortal family family will never be easy, but hopefully we can still learn from our children,_ Poseidon mused. _Maybe we are just big, powerful, immortal teenagers_. He laughed, but didn't think many of the other gods would find that funny.

Poseidon was yanked out of his thoughts by a gasp from Zeus. Refocusing his gaze, he watched Jason grab Nico as he shadow traveled to the Underworld.

"Your son is very brave for doing that." Hades commented to Zeus, who nodded gratefully.

As they watched the scene, Poseidon found himself admiring both demigods. Nico's strength was nearly unending and Jason's loyalty was unwavering. Poseidon and Hades winced when Nico mentioned Percy. The pain in his voice was almost unbearable to hear. Zeus wore a stoic expression. This was one demigod he could not relate to.

It was Hades turn to gasp when Jason hugged Nico and the younger boy brought them back to the Argo II.

"Your son is very brave for doing _that_." Zeus returned the compliment. Poseidon smiled.

When Jason went to fetch Percy and Hazel, all three brothers had white-knuckled grips on the edge of the fountain. This was better than Hephaestus TV, even if their emotional health was on the line. Percy entered the room with Hazel on his tail. She was so different from Nico that Poseidon had forgotten Hazel was Hades' child as well. The other god must be so emotionally torn between feeling anguish for Nico and happiness for Hazel, who should be dead but instead was happier than ever in the strong arms of Frank.

Even Zeus winced when Percy embraced Nico. All three felt their guts wrench when Nico returned the hug and began to cry.

"But _that_, my brothers, is the bravest act of all." Poseidon offered. Zeus nodded and Hades looked like he was about to tear up again.

Silently, they watched Clarisse's awkward apology and the subsequent departure of her, Percy and Jason. They decided not to eavesdrop on Nico and Hazel.

As Percy and Annabeth hurried off to be alone, Zeus backed away from the fountain, "I believe the show's over, as they say, and I do not intend to watch your son's make-out session." He pointed a finger at Poseidon.

Hades backed off as well, "Yes, well this was," he paused looking for the right word, "enlightening, shall we say?" he chuckled a little, "I'm glad I didn't have to watch it alone." The Lord of the Underworld took a step backward and bowed to each of his brothers. "Thank you both, for everything your children have done for Nico, Hazel, and Bianca. I'm not forgetting about Thalia either Zeus."

Both of his brothers respectfully nodded at Bianca's memory. "Hades, feel free to return to your domain. I am lifting the seal over Olympus. Only the Fates know howwe let Dionysus be the first one out." Zeus huffed and Poseidon grinned.

"Thank you brother. I need to find my son. It's about time I started acting like a father." With a flash, Hades was gone.

Zeus turned to Poseidon, "I see that grin Poseidon, but don't think you are getting another thank you. I will, however, say that you should be very proud of that boy of yours. He's grown up a lot since returning my Master Bolt, even if he's still a bratty upstart."

"Jason's not so bad for a walking spark plug either." Poseidon laughed heartily at the mental image of a walking, talking spark plug. Hephaestus would love it.

The Lord of the Skies turned to leave but stopped as he neared the door, "Oh, Poseidon one more thing. I have no idea what Hades was talking about. This new wallpaper you have is absolutely dreadful." Zeus winked and walked back to his own palace.

_Maybe there was hope for this family yet._

Poseidon turned back to the fountain to watch Percy and Annabeth hold each other in the moonlight for a few moments before erasing the image.

_Yes, there most certainly was._


End file.
